UK banking service for international students launches £300k Funderbeam seed round

UniZest has opened a £300k public seed round on cross-border fundraising and trading platform Funderbeam.

UniZest allows international students to open and start using a UK account prior to arrival in the UK and without needing a UK address.

It provides foreign students banking services for their studies in the UK. This includes a foreign exchange feature with highly competitive inter-bank rates and exclusive cash-back scheme.

The funds will enable UniZest to develop and improve the online experience for existing customers, achieved through the launch of a new version of the product.

Including a ‘marketplace’ where UniZest will offer selected products and services from other suppliers to the students.

Having secured substantial private indications already, the public fundraise round is now open, providing investors an opportunity to access this fast-growing sector.

Peter Miles, co-founder and CEO, said: “In the UK, there are over 500,000 international students, each spending £25k per annum, totalling £12.5bn in contributions to the economy.

“One in five prospective international students said they would be discouraged from studying in Britain if we leave the EU.

“Products such as ours are crucial in ensuring that the country remains an attractive and welcoming place to study, whether we leave the EU this year or not.”

UniZest was founded in 2015 by Peter Miles and Chris Donnachie, serial entrepreneurs with over 60 years combined entrepreneurial experience.

UniZest partners with major global brands including Contis Group, Visa and FedEx. In 2018, UniZest was selected to participate in Barclays Techstars programme to accelerate its growth.

It also took part in London & Partners’ China trade mission to support Chinese students coming to study in the UK.

Declan Blackwood, Funderbeam’s investment manager, added: “We are delighted that UniZest have chosen to use our cross-border fundraising and trading platform for this seed round.

“While banks and large financial institutions are still constrained by geographic boundaries, fintechs like UniZest are uniquely positioned to service demographic groups that have historically been overlooked.

“International undergraduate and post-graduate students are one such group.”